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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. prune — to trim
  6. swing — music
  7. bear — the animal
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. chip — for betting
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. swing — in golf
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. shower — rain
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. shower — to wash
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. bear — the animal
  23. spell — a short time
  24. deal — a big deal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com